This summer it has been fun exploring with Eli and watching him discover the great outdoors! Among other things, here are his current favorites:

5. Any type of water play (hoses are especially exciting!)

4. Sliding down his slide and having the dogs lick him at the bottom. Also climbing up the slide; a new talent.

3. Hitting a plastic baseball around on the ground with his bat (thanks Stantons) saying "goal" as he makes contact. I know he's a bit confused but we'll let it pass for now.

2. Raking our yard with his very own sized plastic rake

1. Costco! I know this is not an outdoor activity, but when its too hot to play outside, what better place to go? Air conditioned, free samples, tons of people to say hi to and best of all....Eli can now say it! I was changing his diaper the other day telling him, in a sing-song voice, "we're going to Costco". He looked at me, sort of screwed up his face and said, "Caw-Co". He proceeded to say it the whole way there. He's thinks it is quite a fun word to say!

Today Eli and I got to explore a new park! We had so much fun trying out all the new toys...swings, slides, steps, ropes, the drinking fountain! We also met several fun fuzzy friends and Eli impressed one dog owner by snuggling up to a 5 month old boxer type puppy while he was continuously licked. She said, "wow, you don't usually see kids letting a dog climb all over them and lick them to death!" I assured her we have two tail wagging, sloppy kissers of our own at home, but they don't sit still long enough to let him love them. Among other things, Eli is obsessed with doing everything that is too old for him (will that ever stop?) so of course he had to try crossing a rope bridge, a tire trail and climb up the tower. He was not so successful but he had a lot of fun trying. I'm sure we'll be back to that park many more times to perfect his skills. In the end we took a leisurely swing ride before heading home (via the scrapbook store of course). Here are few more pictures of our morning adventures.

Our weekend was pretty crazy and Sunday specifically was even a bit crazier so I am just now getting to write about Eli's #1 Dad! And that made me realize that Grant is not just a great daddy on Father's Day, but he's pretty spectacular every day! I love to see them wrestling on the floor or to wake up Sunday mornings to find Eli and Daddy cuddled on the couch watching soccer. Eli loves his Daddy and always makes sure to check the bedroom and office for him every morning to see if he's working from home! Its one thing that I was blessed with a fun, loving, silly, intelligent, talented (and might I add handsome?) hubby, but to top it all off, he's also an amazing Dad! Happy Belated Father's Day!

Eli is saying Mama! Its his new favorite word! I should be thrilled, right? Unfortunately he's not referring to me. For the past week we've been hearing his sweet little voice around the house, in the back seat, in the shopping cart, "Mama" "Maaaa Ma!" "MAMA". It sounds so cute, I just wish he was saying it to me! We are not sure exactly who he associates with that title but he will randomly point to specific things or people and say, officially, "Mama". The other day he was looking through Daddy's ESPN magazine and pointed out four mail athletes saying "Mama" at each one. Nice to know his version of 'mama' is so masculine! ha ha! I know one day he'll get it, but for now I'll just have to enjoy the humor in the situation.

We have baby proofed along the way as Eli has grown and become more mobile but one area we have ignored, because we never thought it was a problem, is the window coverings!

Yesterday I was cutting fruit in the kitchen and I could hear Eli playing with the vertical blinds. I was not concerned until he started crying and I walked around the corner to see him sitting down in the corner of our dining room. "He must have bonked his head when he lost his balance", I thought to myself. As I reached down to pick him up, I could see that in fact the metal, beaded chain that rotates the blinds was wrapped under his chin and around his neck choking him! Had he been any smaller, he probably would have been hanging from it. It made my heart stop and brought tears to my eyes. What a scary site and a reality check! Even when I think he is safe in our home, I need to be careful about letting him play on his own for too long without checking on him.

We are going to cut our chain and shorten it so he won't even be able to reach it. Please check your window coverings and see if they are in need of adjustment to keep your kids safe. (As I was writing this I noticed Eli had climbed on our side table, next to the sofa and was turning the lights on and off. I have my work cut our for me!)

I just got home from an amazing experience. Not one that we have to chance to be a part of everyday. I was able to take a walk in Africa through the story of Emmanuel's life, one of four children's journeys being told. He is now 11 years old, but his story starts when he is much younger. This event is being put on by World Vision at Lakeside Church and has been all week, but tomorrow is the last day and it would truly be sad for you to miss it.

Anyone that is local, please visit the link and make an effort to go tomorrow. It is a free event and the exhibit is open from 12 noon to 10pm and takes about 30 min. They do not have child care, unfortunately, and I wouldn't recommend this for children 4 or under (although wearing a baby would probably be ok) as it is an audio tour which includes walking through "African Villages, huts and health clinics" which might be too tempting for little hands to play with. It is also quite dark which could be scary for them.

This evening a quote was mentioned that I think sums it up..."I pray everyday that God would break my heart for what breaks his."

Lately I have been surprised to find (usually once we are out of the house) that Eli and I are matching! I'm sure you are thinking, 'don't you dress him?'. I do dress him, but because I get him ready first and then we play and do chores, I am not really thinking of what he has on by the time I get dressed. Apparently I must be attracted to a certain color scheme each day and dress us both accordingly! I usually feel a bit silly once I realize it, but Oh well, it makes for cute pictures.

Just thought I'd show everyone exactly how much Eli loves ketchup! This meal started out with just green beans and spaghetti O's, and when they weren't a hit, we pulled out the ketchup and Dino Nuggets and guess what? It disappeared, even the green beans!

It is funny to me how little ones get "hooked" on certain things from time to time and can't seem to get enough of whatever it is and then one day, they are on to something else. Eli is no exception! Here are his current "addictions":

5 - Water bottles with straws4 - Balls3 - Playing peek-a-boo (he hides himself with a blanket and then waits for someone to notice and say "Where's Eli?". I don't know how many times I've turned around to look at him in the car to find him sitting there with his blankie over his head!)2 - pillows/blankets (he loves throwing himself down in to a soft pile)1 - Ketchup (these days we can dip just about anything in ketchup and he'll eat it. Last night it was green beans)

The Tyler Family

Life with a child is an amazing journey; one filled with wonder, amazement, countless blessings...and dirt! From sun up to bath time, each day is a new adventure. I thought becoming a mom topped my list of accomplishments, but BEING a mom quickly gained the #1 spot! My husband Grant and our little monkey Eli are my two favorite men and I am blessed to spend each day with them.